My last few columns have explained the portfolios’ approach to diversification and the alternative assets employed, together with their regional equity preferences. Despite the reduction in exposure to ‘growth’ investments within their equity weightings in recent years, investors will need to ensure adequate exposure to the long-term secular themes of the future – certainly when compared with the more traditional portfolio so beloved of the previous market regime. This will also help to ensure portfolio balance is maintained relative to remit.
Why themes?
Thematic investing is often considered a mixed blessing because novice investors can fall prey to slick marketing and popular fads that prove anything but durable, and therefore turn out to be costly – often the ‘popularity’ is already reflected in share prices. Too often, funds are launched that capture the mood of the moment, but then wither on the vine. There can be no substitute for fundamental research whenit comes to the resilience of the trends in question, and there also needs to be a clear commitment to then stay the course given the path is rarely a smooth one.